Brexit: Protocol breakthrough as data-sharing deal agreed

Agreement hailed as ‘positive step’ in ongoing talks over Northern Ireland Protocol

Foreign secretary James Cleverly (PA Wire)

Progress between the EU and the UK on post-Brexit data-sharing has been hailed as a “positive step” in ongoing talks to find a solution to the Northern Ireland Protocol row.

Foreign secretary James Cleverly and Northern Ireland secretary Chris Heaton-Harris met European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic in London on Monday, as London and Brussels try to find a way forward over post-Brexit arrangements in the region.

Both sides hailed an agreement in the area of data-sharing and EU access to British IT systems as a key step in resolving the row over the protocol, and which has left Northern Ireland without a devolved powersharing executive since early last year.